


He Knows

by EmmaKeladry



Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Angst, Disco Karaoke, Drilling holes isn't the answer, Episode: s02e04 An Obol for Charon, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post Season 2, Romance, Space Oddity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:15:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22748431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmmaKeladry/pseuds/EmmaKeladry
Summary: While treating Tilly for an accident, Hugh glimpses something in her medical file that prompts an important conversation with Paul and Reno. They did what to her skull??
Relationships: Hugh Culber/Paul Stamets
Comments: 7
Kudos: 92





	He Knows

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little fic based on a conversation we had on the discord about Hugh finding out what Paul and Reno did to Tilly when he was trapped in the Network. He isn't exactly pleased!

“Umm… Doctor – Doctor Culber, are you busy? I need some help.” Tilly’s quiet voice interrupted Hugh’s soft humming to himself.

It was 0200 and he was the only doctor on duty in the medbay. Hugh set down the scanner he’d been cleaning and observed Tilly. Her curls were wet, and she wore a bathrobe and pajama pants. Tilly held her right arm to her chest, protecting it from being bumped. He motioned for her to take a seat on the bio-bed. She winced as he helped her onto the bed.

“What happened, Tilly?” Hugh asked, picking up his tricorder.

“I was taking a shower, after sixteen hours of work – not that it wasn’t really amazing, but I was really tired, and I probably wasn’t paying attention as I should, and then I – I slipped in the shower. I hit my arm when I fell. It hurts.” Tilly let out a soft whimper as Hugh gently moved her hand off of her injured arm. “I told Michael that we should get some adhesive ducks, but she didn’t get why.”

“I’m sorry.” Hugh tried to keep the smile from his face at the duck comment. He analyzed the results of her scan and added them to her medical file. “It looks like you sprained your elbow when you fell. I can treat it for you and then you can get some rest. Do you want to slip off your robe?”

Tilly’s cheeks turned bright red and she vehemently shook her head. “Nope. Can’t do that.” She looked down at her bare toes, swinging her legs back and forth. “I’m not wearing a shirt,” she mumbled. “It hurt too much to put one on.”

Hugh smiled. “It’s okay. Do you mind if I roll the sleeve up so I can treat you? I promise I’ll be gentle.”

She nodded. “Thanks.”

They remained in comfortable silence as Hugh administered a mild analgesic and tended to Tilly’s elbow. He waited for the medication to take affect and skimmed the newest additions to Tilly’s medical file from when he was in the Network. The second notation, after her post-Network examination, made him pause and his medical persona faltered slightly. Hugh quickly regained his composure. Nope. It had to be an incorrect entry, though with Dr. Pollard’s precise medical care, it couldn’t be. Hugh returned his attention to Tilly’s arm and reduced the swelling. He didn’t say anything at first, but he couldn’t help himself.

“Tilly, I have a question pertaining to your medical file, regarding your post-Network examination –”

Tilly sighed and interrupted Hugh. “Yep. He did it. Sorry.”

Hugh felt his stomach clench. To inflict that pain on her, it wasn’t ethical. “I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault.” She shrugged and quickly regretted the motion.

Hugh finished treating her elbow. He rolled the sleeve of her bathrobe back down. “It might be a little tender tonight, but the pain reliever I gave you will help. Get some rest and try not to do any push-ups in the morning.”

“Thanks, Doctor Culber. I’m going to bed right away.” Tilly slipped down off the bio-bed and started to walk toward the medbay doors. “And Doctor Culber, if it helps, he sang me a song before he did it.”

Oh goodness. Hugh glanced at the time and wished that his shift ended sooner. He needed to have a few words with Paul and Reno.

* * *

Hugh stepped into Paul’s lab and the first thing he saw was Paul and Reno working on a piece of equipment for the spore drive. Paul’s toolkit was open on the console beside them. He could see the offending piece of equipment immediately. Neither of them looked over when the door opened. Hugh moved over to stand behind Paul and delicately placed one hand on his shoulder. Paul, his eyes heavy with exhaustion and a dorky grin on his face, turned to look at him.

“Hugh, is your shift over already?” Paul asked.

“Hey Doc,” Reno said, her voice slightly muffled as she had her face directly next to the component.

“Doctor Pollard just relieved me.” Hugh watched as Paul returned to his work, steading part of the drive as Reno tinkered with it. “It was a quiet night. Tilly was my only patient.”

“The kid okay?” Reno asked. “She was okay when she left here.”

Hugh nodded and remembered she couldn’t see him. “Just a small fall. I fixed her up.” He walked around the front of the console, into their line of sight. “While I was treating her, I noticed something in her medical file that I hadn’t seen before.”

Reno popped her head up. “Oh shit.”

Paul’s face went pale and he glanced at Hugh.

It took a moment for the words to come out, but Hugh made sure they came across in the right tone. “You drilled into Tilly’s skull with a non-medical instrument and without proper medical treatment?!”

“Hugh, I can explain –”

“We did sterilize the bit first –”

“I needed to make a connection with the entity, May, who was controlling Tilly and an amplified cortical implant would make it possible to –”

“Honestly, I had no idea that he could sing –”

Hugh waved his hands, trying to stop the two overlapping stories. “I can’t believe that you drilled into her skull! You could have seriously hurt Tilly even more, not to mention putting her at risk for an infection and it’s unethical to drill into someone’s head like that!”

Reno put up her hands in surrender.

Paul leapt forward and pressed his lips to Hugh’s, cutting off his triad about unsanitary conditions. One hand brushed Hugh’s cheek and slid around to cup the back of his neck, while the other hand gently pulled Hugh closer. Hugh tried to say something, but Paul’s tongue slipping into his mouth interrupted him. Paul hummed softly as he ended the kiss.

“What was that for?” Hugh murmured.

“An apology. And to stop you from yelling at me.” Paul shrugged; his cheeks slightly pink.

Reno cleared her throat to get their attention. “We did apologize to the kid. Made her breakfast when she was feeling better.”

“We also promised that if we ever have a karaoke night on Discovery, we both have to sing with her,” Paul said.

Hugh smiled, making a note to help Tilly set up a karaoke night. “Okay. You’re forgiven.” Hugh extended his hand. “Are you ready to go home?”

Paul quickly accepted his hand. “Yep. I’m ready to cuddle and fall asleep.”

The two walked to the door, leaving a slightly surprised Reno. “Huh. Never expected a shut-up kiss would get us out of trouble. But I have a feeling I should start preparing my pipes for karaoke.” She turned the main console into sleep mode and followed them out of the lab.


End file.
